affinity for the dead

knew a man who went to

cemeteries &

he took photos of the gravestones---

while this is most certainly

not a unique way of finding serenity,

it is one that brings to light

the affinity of the dead,

for there, this man was tranquil

he found peace with those who

have finally been allowed peace,

with those whose lives have finally

ended &

whose personalities have been

eliminated, bringing all stress, drama &

tension to a screeching halt---

this is not to say that while

taking such beautiful black & whites,

that he did not ponder the lives of

each & every one of his “subjects,”

by assessing the size of their stones,

the placement of the stones in the

lot &

the material with which the stones were

made---all helping him to build a

vague character sketch of each individual

now laid to rest.

 

like anything, there were drawbacks

to the meditative grave photography,

for there were all the things that family

members left at the graves, which

made him feel less loved than he had felt,

prior to entering the cemetery in question---

and he wondered, as many of us do,

what would become of him after he left

that cemetery, he wondered just what

really had been the point of going there

in the first place, he wondered what in

his life specifically had led him to be one

who at this time in his life found it

comforting to spend long stretches at a

time in cemeteries, taking photos of

the quiet & stationary, he wondered

about where it all would go, where it all

might lead & in the end,

his only conclusions were

that he’d be stuffed in an urn or

crammed in a box like the rest of em’

soon enough &

the beauty would be that there’d be no need

to have any more questions

on the subject,

so perhaps his affinity

came hand in hand with jealousy,

perhaps it came hand in hand with

envy---

 

perhaps.